Pence, Kaine share long histories in the fundraising trenches

Mike Pence of Indiana has raised funds for six House races and two gubernatorial campaigns, the second of which was aborted when he was added to the GOP’s presidential ticket. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall, File)

Though divided ideologically, Indiana’s Republican Gov. Mike Pence and Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia have traced similar paths through state and federal politics on their way to being nominated for vice president. Both have served in Congress and as governors, and now hope to assume the government’s second-from-the-top job.

Though they may not discuss it tonight during the campaign’s only vice presidential debate, their common ground extends to fundraising, too — at least in broad strokes. The two have relied on lawyers, Wall Street types and a handful of other well-heeled individuals to raise the copious sums they’ve needed for their past campaigns.

A Hoosier’s hunt for cash

Mike Pence, tonight’s surrogate for GOP White House nominee Donald Trump, was elected to the House six times, collecting $1.1 million for his first run in 2000 and almost $2.7 million for his final contest; his 12-year haul came to more than $10.3 million.

After retirees, who contributed $716,789 to Pence’s congressional campaigns and leadership PAC (it’s not unusual for seniors to be No. 1 on any candidate’s list of top donors), the securities and investment industry — aka Wall Street — was his most generous industry, kicking in $376,311. Lawyers and law firms were third, providing $337,914.

The governor’s top donors fall outside those industries, however. The conservative Club for Growth donated $90,762 to Pence’s congressional campaigns through its PAC and earmarked contributions from individuals. Cummins Inc, an engine manufacturer, and Eli Lilly & Co, a pharmaceutical company, round out Pence’s top three campaign contributors. Employees and PACs of these Indiana-based corporations gave $78,500 and $64,350, respectively.

When Pence ran for governor of Indiana in 2012, he raised more than $14.8 million — including $425,000 from the late Dean White, a billionaire businessman from the state; that made White Pence’s top individual donor that year. Big shots of party cash came via the Republican Governors Association and the Indiana Republican Party, which gave $1.1 million and $811,504, respectively.

Pence also picked up $220,000 and $200,000 contributions from conservative bigwigs like Texas homebuilder Bob Perry, who passed away in 2013, and billionaire industrialist David Koch.

After joining the presidential ticket in July, Pence dropped his 2016 re-election bid, having already raised more than $16.1 million. The RGA, Pence’s top funder in 2012, had contributed more than $3 million, and the governor also collected $300,634 from Anthony Moravec, the CEO of Columbus-based Applied Laboratories, Inc., and another $100,000 from David Koch. White, who died in September, also contributed $350,000 to Pence’s 2016 reelection effort.

Trump and the governor will be unable to cultivate much hedge fund or private equity industry cash in 2016 — at least not directly. That’s because the SEC’s so-called pay-to-play rule, implemented in 2010, caps the amount “SEC registered hedge fund advisers” can contribute to sitting state or local officials at $250-$350. Designed to prevent bankers and politicians from exchanging campaign contributions for the lucrative right to manage state pension funds, the rule triggered a Goldman Sachs memo banning certain categories of employees from donating to campaigns that feature a sitting state or local official. The Trump-Pence ticket is specifically listed as an example of a campaign to which employees may not contribute. Are there workarounds? Sure, including gifts to the Republican party.

Pence’s personal finances are less robust than his campaign coffers. His net worth in 2012 was estimated at $211,511. New documents are no more revealing: Pence’s 2016 financial disclosure form reports his $173,860 gubernatorial salary and lists student loans for his children’s education as his only liabilities.

Multiple Kaine candidacies required millions

Tim Kaine has moved relatively quickly between jobs over his political career. He was mayor of Richmond, lieutenant governor and then governor of Virginia, chairman of the Democratic National Committee and finally U.S. senator, the position he still holds, in a span of 18 years.

Democrat Tim Kaine of Virginia has had to raise money to run for mayor of Richmond, lieutenant governor and governor, and senator — and a huge part of his job at the DNC involved harvesting cash for his party. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton, File)

For his 2001 lieutenant governor’s race, Kaine raised almost $2.4 million, according to National Institute on Money in State Politics records. At the top, his haul included $50,000 from the DNC and $40,000 from Virginia real estate magnate Gerald Halpin.

When Kaine ran for governor in 2005, he ratcheted up his fundraising efforts, collecting more than $18 million over the course of the cycle. Like Pence, he benefited from hefty cash infusions from the party, including $1.5 million from the DNC and $685,242 from the Virginia Democratic Party. Kaine also earned $662,964 in unitemized (small) donations and did well with unions, too: the SEIU, Laborers Local 980, Virginia AFL-CIO and IBEW each kicked in six-figure contributions.

Among individuals backing Kaine, billionaire Sheila Johnson, who cofounded Black Entertainment Television and now heads Salamander Hotels and Resorts, made six donations worth a total $392,490 that year. Cisco Systems cofounder Sandy Lerner and real estate developer B. Mark Fried each gave Kaine more than $175,000.

After leaving Richmond and serving as the chairman of the DNC (where corralling cash was a major part of the job), Kaine ran in 2012 for the Senate seat fellow Democrat Jim Webb announced he would be vacating. Kaine ultimately outraised Republican former Sen. George Allen in the general election, pulling in $18 million to his opponent’s $14.5 million.

Over the course of his Senate career, Kaine has raised the most cash from lawyers and affiliated PACs, taking in more than $2.7 million. Like Pence, he has benefited from heavy support from retirees, who have given the senator more than $2.1 million. Employees and PACs in the securities and investment industry come in at No. 3 on Kaine’s list, having contributed almost $1.1 million.

Kaine’s top contributor has been JStreetPAC, a liberal pro-Israel group, leads the way. The PAC and individuals earmarking gifts to Kaine through it have provided him with $178,283 during his Senate run and since. Running just behind is the League of Conservation Voters, which also passed along gifts marked for Kaine; it provided $177,129. Employees of Covington & Burling, a D.C.-based law firm, gave more than $100,000.

Kaine’s net worth, estimated to be roughly $1.45 million in 2014, was far below the Senate average of $10.2 million. The senator’s single outstanding liability then was a 15-year mortgage, and his financial reports list his board memberships at the Myotonic Dystrophy Foundation and the US-Spain Council. Kaine’s income tax returns, released in August, show that he and his wife, former Virginia Secretary of Education Anne Holton, together earned $313,441 last year.

While Kaine was lieutenant governor and then governor, he also accepted more than $160,000 worth of gifts, including vacation lodging, clothes and airfare, Politico reported. While the gifts were properly disclosed and legally permissible under Virginia law, the state’s in-kind donation laws recently came into the spotlight when the U.S. Supreme Court in June unanimously overturned former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell’s (R) ethics conviction, which stemmed from undisclosed gifts and charges of quid-pro-quo corruption.

Pence and Kaine face off at Longwood University in Farmville, Va., tonight at 9 p.m. ET.

Jack joined CRP as a reporting intern in the fall of 2016. He's currently in his last semester at George Washington University, where he is pursuing a B.A. in political science with a minor in creative writing. Since the fall of 2015, he has served as a culture reporter for the GW Hatchet. He comes to the Center having previously interned in philanthropy and campaign finance advocacy.

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